7 Apr 2016

Liverpool strikers Daniel Sturridge and Christian Benteke continue to be the subject of transfer speculation, and new reports today claim that West Ham are considering a £45m double-swoop for the pair this summer.

"West Ham will make moves for Sturridge and Benteke this summer. Sturridge is believed to be assessing his options ahead of next season".

Benteke has already made it clear that he's unhappy with Jurgen Klopp 'ignoring' him, so his alleged desire to leave makes perfect sense.

If he misses out on selection for Euro 2016, it'll (arguably) be a consequence of Klopp's failure to give him regular game time, and in those circumstances, I doubt Benteke will want to stay and play for the man who killed his international dream.

As for 'amazing' Sturridge - swapping Liverpool for West Ham seems like a step-down, but the Hammers are a totally different proposition under Slaven Bilic.

West Ham are currently six points ahead of Liverpool in the table, and if the London club finishes ahead of Liverpool (and even qualifies for the Champions League), then a transfer suddenly becomes a more attractive proposition.

Additionally, like Klopp, Bilic has charisma; there's an aura about him, and he arguably has the pulling power to attract both Benteke, and Sturridge. £45m seems too low for both players, but Sturridge - who has 47 goals in 82 games for Liverpool - initially cost the club just £12m, and given his terrible injury history, it may be hard to get a fee befitting his talent.

£45m basically means Liverpool break even on both Sturridge and Benteke. Alternatively, it could be seen as £20m for Benteke, and £25m for Sturridge, which seems reasonable. Benteke leaving is a no-brainer, but Sturridge and Benteke leaving together and signing for a potential Champions League rival? That seems a tad short-sighted.

For this to happen, Liverpool will need to bring in two top-class replacements, and although Klopp's transfer history suggests that he's capable of doing that, is he capable of doing it one transfer window?